Tofu for a better mood
We recently read about a nurse who had suffered from depression and an eating disorder who was returned to good health with the help of a Tofu rich diet. Now, we tend to avoid miracle cure stories as we simply want tofu to be seen as good food. But there is some evidence (well tested medical evidence published in the New England Journal of Medicine and Lancet), serotonin is an important neurotransmitter in the brain and needs to be enhanced in depresed patients.
The foods that depressives should eat should have an abundance of tryptophan. In fact missing just one day of tryptophan intake can cause relapse into depression. Tryptophan is found in black walnuts, almonds, sesame, gluten flour, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds and tofu. In fact tofu has the highest level at 747mg/100gms.
Meat, by contrast, which contains a large amount of amino acids, reduces the flow of tryptophan to the brain.
There are many factors that lead to depression and its treatment. Nutrition is just one of them and whilst the improved mood stories about tofu are anecdotal, there is good scientific evidence behind it.
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